MISSING SIGNS:
It has come to my attention that the signs for a few stages are either missing or damaged. I will need to create new signs. In the meantime, I'm providing you with the names of the signs here to keep the cache active while I work on the new signs.
STAGE 2 Sign: farfaraway
STAGE 10 Sign: oceanview
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This cache is a 12-stage multi which will bring you on a tour of Blandings and Clifford Parks. The D/T rating is high because it will take a significant effort coupled with a long hike along varying terrain. Additionally, it will be helpful if you bring a special tool, i.e., a smart phone, with a browser app, which is able to connect to the internet. Having this special tool will facilitate the effort to gather the needed information for each stage from the certitude geochecker links. The cache can be completed without the special tool, but it will take much longer to complete.
The stages are setup to be done in order. Each stage contains a sign. Enter the words on the sign into the geochecker to obtain the coordinates to the next stage. The geochecker will also provide you with a number which you will need to enter into the geochecker at the next stage with the words in the next sign. For example, if the sign located at stage 2 says "blanding park" and the number from the stage 1 geochecker is "1234", then you would enter the following into the geochecker without spaces, "blandingpark1234".
Both parks are open dawn to dusk so no night caching. Expect and plan for a significant hike. All of the stages are located near trails which will provide you with a nice hike or bike ride through the two parks. Of course, you may choose to bushwhack instead. Either way, depending on the time of year and the weather conditions, you may encounter bugs, ticks, thorns, critters, water obstacles, and/or mud along the way.
There is a FTF prize of a gift card to a local pizza restaurant.
MAP
A topo map with the major trails is provided below. You can also find a Clifford Park trail map online.
BLANDINGS PARK
This is a wonderful place to walk, and also has a unique story. Local land owners took steps to protect the more ecologically valuable part of their land while developing a subdivision along Route 9. They convinced nearby land owners to also donate parcels, leading to the protection of more than 200 acres. Their plan is to continue conserving even more acres in the large expanse of undeveloped land bordered by West Street, Pool Street, Granite Street and Guinea Road. The area is known to harbor endangered Blanding’s turtles.
Because these woods were once quarried for granite — an important historical industry for Biddeford — there is a system of old, rough tracks cutting through the land. Some of these have been turned into marked trails. Most are wide and easy to walk, like the green, orange, and red trails.
CLIFFORD PARK
Clifford Park in Biddeford is a spider web of very twisty, rocky and rooty singletrack for mountain bikers or hikers. For bikers, this group of trails will challenge your technical skills. The trails are marked, but not universally well marked. Starting from the trailhead by the tennis courts, continue along the wide path approximately 250 yards to a sweeping left marked by black blazes to the first trail intersection and the entire network. Generally speaking, the outer loop is more level and wide and well suited for casual walking and riding, while the internal network is more challenging. A scenic waterfall is located on the red trail along the east side near Parkside Drive.
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